Thread drying apparatus



Dec. 2l, 1948. L. A. COREY ETAL THREAD DRYING APPARATUS y Filed Nov, 27, 194e 0R/N A. COREY THOMAS $.MAYNER INVENTORS BY Z i. j

ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 21, 1948 THREAD DRYHNG APPARATUS lliorin A. Corey, Cleveland Heights, and Thomas S. Mayner, Willoughby Township, Lake Gounty, Dhio, assignors to Industrial Rayon Corporation, Cleveland. Ohio, a corporation of llliela-l ware s Application November 27, 1946, Serial No. '712,476

t3 Claims.

l This invention relates toan apparatus for dry= ingl thread or the like and, more particularly, to an apparatus having a generally circular heated periphery over which the thread or thel like is occurs a minimum loss of heat before the thread is reached. The drying reel comprises a threadbearing periphery of longitudinal bar 'or tubular thread-bearing members having passages through adapted to pass. 5 which a heating medium is continuously circu In the manufacture cf thread or the like, for in` lated. With the passages located within the stance rayon, by the continuous process a pluthread-bearing bars, the distance through which rality of treating steps are performed on the the heat is transferred to the thread is merely the thread in a rapid and sequential manner. One thickness of the thread-bearing wall over which of these steps constitutes the drying of the l0 the thread travels. Such a construction adthread. It is, of course, desirable to rapidly, univantageously provides for a rapid transfer of heat, formly andefr'ectively drythethread continually at a low heat loss, and a lower heat content in the a rate comparable to that oi the other treatments fluid used. i performed on the thread. To effect such drying, The invention and its advantages will be more there should be a rapid and constant transfer readily understood by reference to the following of heat tothe thread from the surface of a reel description and the attached drawing Where over which it travels. Figure 1 represents in elevational cross sec- Thread-drying reels are usually heated by fluids 121011. a cantilever type threadrstrihg threadsuch as steam, hot Water, hot oil or hot gases. advancing drying reel; These heating iluids are utilized in either openvFigure 2 is a section of the drying reel 0f F13- ended or closed type thread-drying devices. Genure 1 taken along line 2 2; and erally, the closed type ci drying device 1s prefer- Figures 3 and 4 represent `modiflcatious of the able as it is more economical, efficient, and safer reel of Figure 1. to use. Although such thread-drying devices are Referring to Figures 1 and 2. the reel ShOWh iS advantageous, they are not as eillcient as they 25 formed of two generally cylindrical reel members could be because the distances from their interior l and il which may be made of metal 0r 0f l10nwherein the heating fluid circulates to the thread metallic heat conducting material. Reel memon the surface of the device are greater than deber l is mounted concentrically on the shaft l2 sired, the distances causing certain heat losses. t0 rotate therewith. The reel member i@ com- It is an obvious fact, of course, that the longer prises a cylindrical chamber l5 having a. pee the distance through which heat must be transriphery of a plurality of longitudinal bar memmitted the greater is the heat loss. If a predeterbers il'. The chamber i5 is formed by enclosing mined temperature is to be maintained at the sur the cylindrical section with end closing members face of the reel or of the drying device, then any i8 and i9 which are mounted on shaft i2. The heat lost because of distance must be compenend closing members are frictionally bound to sated for by increasing the temperature of the the shaft by means of seals 2u, 2i, thus afdxing heating duid or increasing the heating fluid cirthe reel member i to the shaft l2. The frictional culation. yHeat losses can be materially reduced binding oi the closures is effected by drawing a by decreasing the heat transfer distance to a reel cap 23 against the seal 2i and front closure memsurface, and the elciency of an internally heated 40 ber i3 by means of a threaded'bolt 2t in the end drying reel improved. of the shaft l2, compressingdboth the seals 2t, 2i It is the purpose of this invention to provide between the closure members and the shaft. This a thread drying apparatus wherein the heat construction not only binds the reel member lll transfer distance is minimized so that heat losses to theshaft but it also makes the chamber l5 are advantageously and materially reduced. Adl5 fluid tight. vantageously, the invention will be described in Reel member i also hasv a periphery formed connection with a cantilever type thread dry- 0f a plurality of longitudinal bar members t8., ing, thread advancing reel wherein the circulating The bar members of both reel members, it, il heating fluid is made to circulate in close proxare positioned in an interdigitating relation, the imity to the thread. Such a reel is shown in the two sets forming a unitary, generally cylindrical, Corey Patent No. 2,413,217. Passages are prothread-storing, thread-advancing reel. The bar vided in thread-bearing members of such a cantimembers 2B of the reel member ll are supported lever type reel to conduct a heating fluid substanat one end by means of a flange 29 and at the tially adjacent to the thread; the lpassages being other end by means of a reinforcing circular ring in such close proximity to the thread that there 30. The flange 29 is, in turn. fixed by means of bolts 32 to the ange of hub member 3|. Hub member 3i is adapted to rotate on a pair of antifriction bearings 33, 3! mounted on a generally circular eccentric and askew member 35. The skewed eccentricity of the member 35 positions the reel member I i in an askew and oiset relation to the concentric reel member I0. This relationship causes. the reel when rotated to advance thread over its surface in a number of generally helical turns.

As shown in Figure 1, the reel member il is mounted so as to rotate on the eccentric member 35. The concentric reel member i which is xed to the shaft i2, drives or is adapted to drive the eccentric reel member il through frictional bar contact or advantageously through a complemen-y tary gear set in order to prevent frictional contact between the longitudinal bar members.' The eccentric reel member II is then, advantageously driven by means of the complementary gears iii and ii which are attached to the reel members I and ii respectively. Gear @d mounted on reel member lo is thus adapted to drive reel member I I through gear di.

The longitudinal thread-bearing bar members I 7 of reel member i@ are provided with passages ft2 for the circulation of a heating fluid. The

passages 52 are made when the bar members are ly through the longitudinally bar members in order to eiect 'communication with passages t6 and 5t in the end closures I9 and I 8, respectively, Thence passages 66 communicate with inlet openings d in shaft i2 and passages t with the interior of chamber I5. Openings liB in the shaft heating fluid serves to heat up the reel interior and to thereafter maintainfits temperature.

Figures 3 and 4 show how the reel construction can be modied to eliminate or avoid'the use oi' the chamber I5. In Figure 3, the front closure member i8 is altered in its design and is made of such thickness so as to have, bored therethrough a passage 55 which communicates with the shaft exhaust openings 55. The closure member I8 thus encompasses the shaft openings 55 in a similar manner as rear closure member i9 encompasses the shaft inlet openings t8; If it is desired to prevent any heat loss to the interior of the reel member lll, the inside of the reel may be insulated or the cylindrical portion may be constructed of any desirable heat insulating material. The heat loss, however, is very readily stabilized in that direction so that insulation may not be necessary.

Where the thickness of the vertical section of the longitudinal thread bearing member i7 will not permit the use of a single passage M or 55 of the required diameter for the circulation of the heating fluid, then additional passages such as passages 60 and S'I may be provided .in order to permit an adequate flow of iluid.

The chamber I5 may be entirely eliminated and q at the same time the weight of the reel reduced I2 serve as inlets for the heating fluid into the v passages d2 of the reel member i0. The reel interior or chamber I5 is exhausted through shaft openings 55.

Heating iiuid under pressure is then adapted to circulate in the longitudinal passages i2 of the bar members Il, thence into chamber I5 of reel member I0 and out of it through shaft I 2 exhaust openings 55 into the shaft exhaust passage 52. Since the passages 42 in the bar members I1 are under the periphery of the reel member I0, there l is a substantially immediate transfer of heat to the thread advancing over the reel. The thickness of the wall between the passage 42 and the thread carrying surface can, of course, be such so as to only provide sufficient strength to carry the thread. The bar members 28 of the eccentrically positioned reel member Ii are, of course,

. heated by radiation from the bar members Il.

As stated, the heating iiuid is exhausted from the reel chamber I5 through openings 55 and the core passage 52 of the shaft I2. The heating uid, instead of rst being accumulated in the chamber I5, can be exhausted at once from the by constructing the unit reel member IB of a light material such as lsheet aluminum and aluminum tubing, or of stainless steel. As shown in Figure 4, the closures i8 and I9 may be formed as hollow structures of a sheet material having the required thickness to provide the necessary strength. Being hollow, the closure members provide adequate space for the admission and the exhaust of the heating uid, The thread bearing bar' members I1 may be formed of tubular sections which are fastened and sealed into position in the closure members I8, I9. The closures I8 and I9 as hereinbefore described may be mounted directly over the inlet and exhaustopenings 48- sets of bar members forming a generally circular periphery over which the thread or thelike is adapted to pass, means for actuating the bar members to advance the thread in a helical path, one of said sets of bar members being hollow and serving as heating fluid conductors for the W of a heating fluid therethrough', and a heating fluid inlet and outlet means t0 said heating fiuid bar member conductors.

2. An apparatus for drying thread orvthe like comprising a reel embodying two interdigitating sets of bar members disposed in an offset and incomprising a reel embodying two interdigitating sets of bar members disposed in an offset and inclined relation to each other forming a generally circular periphery over which the thread or the like is adapted to pass, one of said sets of bar members forming the periphery of a hollow chamber, said bar members of said set having passages throughout substantially their lengths, end closures for said chamber, a shaft on which said reel is mounted, said shaft having conduits for supplying and exhausting a heating fluid to and from said set of hollow bar members.,c and said end closures having passages communicating' with said shaft heating iluid conduitsand thepassages of said set of bar members.

4. An apparatus for drying thread or the like comprising a reel embodying two interdigitating sets of bar members disposed in an inclined relation to each other forming a generally circular periphery over which the thread or the like is adapted to pass, one of said sets of bar members having passages .substantially throughout their lengths forming the periphery of a generally cylindrical chamber, one end of said passages communicating with the interior of said chamber, end closures for said chamber, passages in one of said' end closures, a shaft on which said reel is mounted, said shaft having conduits for supplying and exhausting a heating iiuid to and from said bar member passages, said end closure passages .ioining one of said shaft conduits with said bar member passages, the other of said shaft conduits communicating with said hollow chamber. 4

5. An apparatus for drying thread or the like comprising a reel embodying two interdigitatingI sets of bar members, forming a generally circular periphery over which the thread or the like is adapted to pass, one of said sets of bar members being hollow, a shaft supporting said reel having passages for the inlet and exhaust oi a heating* fluid to said set o'i hollow bar members, and hollow end supporting means for said set of hollow bar memberssaid hollow end supporting means enclosing said shaft passages and communicating with both the hollow bar members and said shaft passages.

6. A cantilever type thread storing, thread advancing, drying apparatus comprising a reel embodying two interdigitating sets of bar members disposed in an offset and askew relation to each other forming a generally circular periphery over which thread orthe like is adapted to pass, a shaft having a heating fluid inlet and outlet on which said reel is mounted, one of said sets of bar members being hollow, said set of hollow bar members having shaft supporting means at substantially their ends for supporting them concentrically of said shaft, shaft supporting means for REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 638,993 Schrader et ai. Dec. 12, 1899 923,777 Delubac June 1, 1909 1,816,307 Von Reis July 28, 1931 1,820,621 Junkers Aug. 25, 1931 1,983,221 Furness Dec. 4, 1934 K 2,309,771 Jordan Feb, 2, 1943 

